It’s interesting my head is still intact. At least, I don’t think I’m mentally unsound yet. I banged my head yesterday while doing the annual kitchen scrub with Jean (while mom and dad evacuated the house and enjoyed a short holiday in Malaysia). The last time my head got knocked was just 2 weeks ago in Thailand when I accidentally rammed my head into a wall. This is probably nature’s way of regulating my brain cell population.

This year, I had the luxury of being a vice head of TF. But I’m thankful for the experience because I got to see the inner workings of the committee more clearly. Also, I could learn from xj while trying to assist her. Next year, I will be taking on the greater challenge. At first, I really didn’t want the role and did my best to avoid getting picked because I didn’t like the idea of being a leader of the comm. But I was still chosen. I gave in at that point because well, maybe God wants me to learn something from it. The feeling of accomplishing my first 会议议程 (meeting agenda) just now was just great.

Alright, off to church now for countdown service. I just noticed I begin and end almost every year with the church.

One of the after effects I faced the past few days after coming back from 大谷地 was the compulsion to flush toilets the water-friendly way. In the village, there’s usually a big pail of water in each toilet and a small scoop for pouring water into the toilet bowl. During my short stay, I gradually perfected the art of flushing the toilet efficiently. However, during the first few days of city life, I never failed to spin around trying to find a pail of water before finally remembering about the tiny flush button.

I went to climb Bukit Timah hill with mom and dad today after sending Jean to school. At least I don’t feel so bad for spending yesterday snacking on junk food. We went to Old Town White Coffee after part 1 of breakfast and I think the caffeine has no effect on me. I managed to knock out this evening, but that probably means I’ll be spending tonight wide-eyed. Good – I can work on the tf 2010 intro video.

I have something to be thankful for. I’m still alive. I’m serious - It’s only when you realise you nearly died that you start thinking about life, and death. On 23 Dec at 2am, mom was driving me home from the airport. At such odd hours, drivers usually drive very fast, about 120-140km/hour. We reached a road junction and turned right. However, mom didn’t expect the taxi she saw far away to be speeding such that it was heading straight for the left side of the car by the time she took the turn. All of a sudden, I was awoken by the screeching sound of the taxi’s tyres. When I opened my eyes, the taxi was very near my door and all I could do was hold my breath and watch. Miraculously, the taxi and our car managed to miss each other by about a metre. The first thought that came to me was, I’m not in heaven yet – I didn’t die! So I’m thankful I’m still alive and not lying in a coffin.

Today, I was finally baptised. “Finally”, because it took me a year to consider getting baptised. Chandini, Evangeline and Natalie came to witness the baptism. I think Chandini and Evangeline were very lost in the Chinese, but thankfully there was Natalie on hand to help translate. Baptism has 2 main objectives – to publicly affirm Christian faith and to officially become a member of the church (and hence participate in holy communion).

Getting dunked in the water is a once-in-a-lifetime experience that I’ll always remember. Jerome said that he’s going to wear goggles when he gets baptised. Not a bad idea. Today was the first time I participated in holy communion. I was coughing after drinking the wine. After the service, there was a long photo-taking session with family, relatives and friends. They made it seem like I was getting married or what.. Ye ye was visibly happy, probably because one of his grandchildren finally hit the water after many years of prayer.

Again, thanks everyone for the gifts and well wishes.

I was so tired I took a rare afternoon nap before going out again for dinner with family and grandparents.

Tomorrow is another long day. Sec 3 Sunday School class outing at Sentosa, but some old people like me were invited to gate-crash it. As special guests, the JC1s and I have to cook food for the picnic. That reminds me – I need to get off now to prepare sandwiches.

大谷地

After being separated from computers for more than a week, I feel so relieved using one now. Over at Thailand, I had the chance to appreciate nature. Before last week, I nearly forgot that stars even existed. In 大谷地, it's dark enough at night to see the whole sky filled with stars. That's when Twinkle Twinkle Little Star(s) comes in...

There are so many things I learnt about and experienced I don't even know where to begin.

大谷地 (Arunothai) is a Chinese-speaking village with about 20000 people. The people living in the refugee camps mainly came over from China to Myanmar then down to Thailand. They are stateless, meaning that they don't belong anywhere and have no basic rights. They are quite poor and are mainly involved in the primary industry (agriculture etc). The families are usually large (they don't care about contraception) and they have poor living conditions. One thing about village life is that news spreads very easily. Though we didn't know many of the people there, I can safely say that a significant portion of the village knew us already.

The block in 主恩之家 where we stayed. We occupied the whole 3rd floor for meeting room and sleeping quarters

We did 逐家布道，whereby we visited homes, talked to the people there and shared the gospel. It's different from doing it in HDB flats in Singapore. Over there, the houses are always open and the people are very willing to talk. I spent around 2 hours while still in Singapore trying to sort out how to use the wordless book (无字书）in Chinese. However, when I got to 大谷地，I didn't even manage to use the tool once. That's when I learnt that to share the gospel to people there, you need to find out how they are doing, their needs, and address their doubts about Christianity. There's a personal connection that needs to be established before you can really get them to open up and talk. It's more than just throwing the gospel at them and hoping they'll consider accepting it. After learning this important lesson, I'm going to try developing my Chinese conversational skills and read up more on systematic theology.

One of our tasks was also to teach people in 大谷地 basic hygiene - how to wash hands. I taught some classes at 恩惠学校 (2 kindergarten classes, P1 and P3). I had to shout very loudly to keep up with all the noise around. The children there are keen learners. Most participate actively and respect us "teachers" a lot. During school hours at night, you can hear children reciting texts loudly. By the end of all the shouting, I was practically croaking. It's the type when you try to shout but your voice breaks into a high pitch ("zao xia"). Despite the pain my throat went through, the smiles on the children's faces were enough to keep me going.

A classroom in 恩惠学校

Xj teaching the class how to wash their hands. There was a demonstration part when 2 classmates could go up to use real soap and water to wash their hands. The other kids became so excited they rushed up to the front to see.

I'll remember this girl for a long time. The day before leaving, she gave me a bunch of flowers. Though I can't remember clearly, she is most probably from one of the classes I taught. Though it was a simple act, her sincerity made it mean a lot to me.

However, there is a problem with teaching the children how to wash hands because most of them don't even have enough water at home. Water is a luxury in 大谷地 and until that most basic need for water is met, there is little that can be done to improve hygiene standards there.

The teachers at 恩惠学校 are really nice people. Despite their respectable positions, they always call us "老师" and have teachable attitudes. One of the teachers taught me how to ride a motorcycle. It was a really cool experience. Though I started off quite shaky, I didn't fall over and managed to get the hang of it. I'm glad I didn't end up destroying his motorcycle.

My motorcycle "shifu"

I regret not getting to know the youth in 主恩之家 (the orphanage) better, apart from the last day when we were just about to leave. They were quite shy in the beginning and the talk about private issues we had with the girls was rather awkward. What surprised me was that although they live in a village located in a valley very far from the city, they are up to date with the songs we sing in Singapore. We have many songs in common, and that made worshipping together easy. I think they're even slightly more advanced because they use more Hillsong-converted-to-Chinese songs, and they even search through youtube for songs. Furthermore, some of them are really talented in music, even without proper training.

家财, a teacher who's also from 主恩之家

We had a campfire for the children living in 主恩之家

In the middle: ren huan and hai hui. They are friendly girls whom we also stayed with at 主恩之家

There were quite a few large-scale church events which coincided with our visit. We were either completely or partly in charge of 陪灵会, 儿童布道会 (children's evangelical event)，儿童主日学 (children's Sunday School) and the Sunday service. I was quite tired by the end of each day, which turned out to be a good thing because I slept very well each night.

I met these 2 children while visiting houses and in church. They had really nice smiles that could brighten up anyone's day.

When it was time to leave 大谷地, I honestly felt reluctant to because I had just started getting to know the people there more. There were 2 boys who tried running after the pickup we were on, bidding us farewell. That somehow made me miss the place immediately. Some of us suffered from "withdrawal symptoms" after leaving 大谷地, making the trip back to Chiang Mai city quieter.

The mission trip team and pastor lee's family

We spent another day in Bangkok, mainly spent on shopping, before returning to Singapore.

Through the mission trip, I got to see the world. Before this trip, I found it hard to believe that so many people could die of hunger, dehydration or disease every day. But now, I've seen for myself that there are so many people out there who need help - not just in meeting their needs for food, water and shelter, but also their spiritual lives.

I'll end off with a song we presented - 委身之歌. Its been stuck in my head for a few days but the lyrics are meaningful.

The rest of the pics are on fb

The past few days were quite hectic. My weekends have been packed with meetings and rehearsals from 9am to 10pm with very little time to breathe.

Today was more relaxing. I went over to Jie Ying’s house to play. We finally had the chance to play Totoro again, but I got a little rusty from the long break. Oh we also played our all time favourites, Czardas and Legende (blah blah blah). After we got tired of Dvorak’s (un)romantic pieces for violin and piano, jy took me on a cycling tour around her neighbourhood. We visited main tourist attractions like very artistic graffiti near the canal and playground. It was a great workout.

After that, I went to meet Ai and Ruri for lunch at PS. We watched 2012. I thought the movie effects were quite good, though some parts of the story were unrealistic. I’ve been thinking, what was I like before I was born? What does being nothing feel like?

I’ll be off to Thailand tomorrow for a mission trip. This year, fewer people will be going – 6. We’ll be going northern Thailand higher up Chiang Mai, at the border between Myanmar and Thailand. We’ll be staying in an orphanage run by a missionary our church is supporting, and we’ll be reaching out to those in the refugee camp and the orphanage. Though it’s my first time on a mission trip (I finally reached the age limit), it won’t be my first time to 大谷地. my family and I have been to the orphanage before. We went there while on holiday in Chiang Mai 3 years ago to visit the missionary and he took us around.

In case anyone is feeling too bored next week, there’s something I recommend. My church choir has combined with 2 other church choirs to perform at Orchard Road for the Celebrate Christmas in Singapore (CCIS) event. If you’re free, you can go down to watch them on Saturday, 19 December at either 8pm or 9pm outside Tong building (Rolex building), which is just beside Paragon. The performance will consist of songs strung together by incidental music and narration.

"Preview" performed in church yesterday (only those from my church)

Awaken Us, O Lord (1st song)

I was supposed to sing at Orchard but since I decided to go for mission trip, I won’t be. However, I will be joining the choir for repeat performances on 23 and 24 Dec at Ang Mo Kio Methodist Church and Ang Mo Kio Gospel Hall (my church) respectively. The Christmas event on those 2 days will start at 7.30pm.

Warning: the performance is in Chinese

At Orchard Road, you can probably catch Jean singing, and mom doing the narration. The performance should be quite good. We have been rehearsing for 3 hours each week for the past 3 months. All the teenagers (girls) involved from my church are singing descant. It was through this that I learnt I could actually hit an A (one ledger line above treble clef stave). Once you hit that, F and G are no longer a big deal. My favourite song is the last one.

Lastly (if you’re a Christian), please keep the mission trip in your prayers. Pray for the people there, that they’ll be willing to hear the gospel, as well as for health and safety of the members. Thanks

I’ll be back on 23 Dec at 0045. I hope I won’t be too tired cus I still have to sing at night. Till then, bye!

From my point of view, today was quite tragic.

Xj and I went to xwls’s house to visit her and her baby. After having lunch together and chatting, we decided to make a move. I opened the door and guess what? I couldn’t find my shoes! I thought I was dreaming at first, but when I looked around, only xj’s sandals were there. Then it finally sank in that someone must have stolen my shoes.

I was stunned. That pair cost mom and dad at least a hundred dollars and I had it for less than a year.

There was nothing much we could do, so I borrowed a pair of slippers and went shopping for shoes with xj. My post-trauma budget was below a hundred. I finally found one but it isn’t the same Asics brand. So now I’ve broken out of the Chan family Asics chain. Every Chan has an Asics pair of sport shoes – from my grandparents to my uncle, aunt, cousins, parents and Jean.

Whoever stole it really has weird morality. Anyway, I’ll just treat it as a Christmas present for someone who hopefully needed it more than me. I’m very tempted to lock up the shoe cupboard outside my house. Although condos are supposedly safer, there’s still a risk. The thief can easily run off with 3 Timberlands and another 3 Asics shoes.

From mom’s point of view, my tragedy was a blessing.

After I got home at night and told her about the incident, of course she was shocked. But then when she and dad started talking about it, she was laughing for like 5 whole minutes.

I think I know why mom took it so lightly. It was because today, I got a letter saying that I was going to be awarded money for some EAGLES thing (which I don’t really know about). And a few days ago, the edusave scholarship thing came in the mail. The awards came at the right time because it could compensate for the loss of my shoes, as well as cover the cost of the new one, with even more money to spare. Very timely. But still, I have no idea why she finds it so funny.

Mom said it was probably God’s will. Ah well. Whatever it is, for once, the awards came in useful. At least I don’t feel so bad about the shoes.

(Mom just arrived home with Jean and burst into laughter, again.)

As Jean’s supportive sister, I went with mom to visit the NEmation concentration camp. The place was so dimly lit I think they’re trying to compensate for the large amount of electricity used to feed their equipment. There were other supportive parents and siblings (who looked rather bored) too. I overheard one mother talking to a trainer about how she had to plan her holiday just to fit in with her child’s NEmation schedule. Then I realised, mom and dad are not alone. They should set up some Victims of NEmation support group.

Today was back to basics with vibrato. I just learnt that vibrato is the combination of two semitones. I’m also too used to vibratos which are technically slightly inaccurate, although the sound is still acceptable. And I need to make the vibratos slower yet rich - what my teacher calls “fat” vibrato.

I finally found it on Youtube. I like this version of 你真伟大 (How great Thou Art), arranged by 新心音乐事工 (New Heart Music Ministries). It’s so great because of the way the music helps to paint the lyrics. The third verse especially.

当主再来，欢呼声响澈天空，何等喜乐主接我回天家，- the music sounds dignified

我要跪下，谦恭的崇拜敬奉，- the dynamics suddenly drop and the texture is lighter

并要颂扬神阿你真伟大。- a crescendo and back to the triumphant style

⁴ "Show me, O LORD, my life's end
       and the number of my days;
       let me know how fleeting is my life.

⁵ You have made my days a mere handbreadth;
       the span of my years is as nothing before you.
       Each man's life is but a breath.
       Selah

Psalms 39:4-5

I’m not going to waste my holiday by waking up late and rotting around outside or at home anymore. It’s time to get on to more serious work.

I feel so accomplished because I’ve finished half of my programme notes. I was so devastated last night because Microsoft Word ate up one of my paragraphs which I spent 45 minutes refining. I had to do it all over again because my ageing brain couldn’t remember the latest version. I know what information I want to include, but I have so much trouble expressing it coherently. But on the bright side, spending the past week researching has made me enjoy the pieces more.

I’ve been using time as wisely as possible, preparing for next week’s mission trip and next year’s church stuff (which I don’t think I can type out here).

I still don’t know what to spend January doing. Either stay home, get a job, or join SYFC’s project serve, which is probably the best option. The problem is that I don’t know anyone else who’s going for it. I’m the only one who took O levels this year in church, not counting the sec 3 higher Chinese people. Sigh.. no one to drag along.

Once again, happy (belated) birthday, Jie Ying!

I think surprise parties are possible only when the victim is extremely blur. Ok no, the organisers must be very skillful.

We had a nine-course dinch (invented by ah zoom, definition: between lunch and dinner). Apparently, only food made by Ck considered was safe to eat. Now, I'm so sick of pumpkin soup.

Square spaghetti

9 course dinch

Ck, Pearlyn and Jy look like they're enjoying the food

One of my attempts to get a picture of everyone..

Another attempt which failed miserably..

Finally. They only listen to Jean..

Jy's speechless cake (cus it doesn't have the icing words)

Jy and the cake. I need to add that Jy took a very long time to blow out the candles. They weren't even the relighting type that I had to try to blow out. The main reason is because she couldn't stop laughing. Thankfully, there were no sparks flying about and the whole house didn't turn smokey.

The Happy Brithday song video is on Facebook. I don't think I'll torture more ears by putting it here. (Caution: there are 2 versions, I played one of them only slightly less horribly than the other. Please listen at your own risk of tone deafness)

Alright that's all for my limited edition of photos. Ck should have more.

Matthew 24:36-44 (New International Version)

The Day and Hour Unknown

³⁶"No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son,^[a] but only the Father. ³⁷As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. ³⁸For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; ³⁹and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. ⁴⁰Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. ⁴¹Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.

⁴²"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. ⁴³But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁴So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

There are people thinking the world will end in 2012. But then according to the Bible, we know that the Lord’s coming will be at a time when everyone least expects it. If that’s the case, since so many people are expecting the world to end in 2012, then all the more according to the Bible, it won’t right? But then again, if everyone started to think like me, the world might just end in 2012.

I wonder if anyone understands my “logic” because it doesn’t seem to make sense to me. Or maybe it wasn’t supposed to. So in conclusion, I shouldn’t worry about when the world is ending. Instead, just be well prepared.

What’s it like to have eternal life? How long is forever?

I managed to complete 2 major tasks today, the things I wanted to do after O levels.

I completed the Tamiya model my grandparents gave me for my birthday (very long ago). This is the special edition Porche Boxter. I spent quite a few hours painting and putting the pieces together. I started last last week, breaked for holiday, then finished it off today.

I also sorted out the textbooks, TYSs and emptied my files. My desk looks so much better now. At least it's free of the O level invasion.

This is the amount of paper an average O level taker accumulates at the end of sec 3 and 4. This isn't even including a significant stack of papers Jean adopted from me for reference. It's quite scary thinking I've gained so much knowledge in just 2 years.

Finally, I'm back. I've attached the photos related to the posts. Just a note, the pictures have been attached to the paragraphs in such a way that you see the pictures (from top to bottom) before reading the short description (if there is), then the related paragraph. Yea, just in case anyone gets confused.

In summary:

1. Picture
2. (short description)
3. Content in paragraph

I've just finished my dinner, and I'm moving on to the crepe which dad improvised on. I have a second serving of wine to drink later, probably my last glass till I'm 18. (edit: no it wasn't the last. I had another glass during lunch on Saturday) We were huddling around the TV just now because there was breaking news that Tiger Woods was involved in a car accident. I'm so proud of myelf because I was watching CNN when the news first broke. Yea simple things make me happy..

Asterix!

The following pictures are quite funny. These are famous works which were re-interpreted into "Asterix" forms

We walked around the Latin Quarters this morning, which is the area near our hotel. We saw so many things but I'm really too tired to type them out. One of the interesting places was a building with the tombs of famous people such as Marie Curie. We were walking aroud when we suddenly saw some posters outside the museum of middle ages. There was an Asterix exhibition inside! The Chans are supporters of Asterix, and we're headed by dad, who spent his childhood reading Asterix comics. So we quickly rushed back to the hotel to put down the stuff we bought, and then walked over to the museum. It was very fascinating because I got to see the original mnuscripts, texts and drawing by the creators. The down side was that the original language of Asterix comics is French, so I couldn't read them.

Eating a chocolate crepe

One of the stalls selling food

The rest of the day was mainly spent shopping at large departmental stores. There was a lot of walking and shopping to do. In the evening, we went to the Christmas night market (the Parisian version of a pasar malam) for the third time. The main differences are that this market sells better (more valuable) products, it's not hot and stuffy, and the stalls are very nicely decorated (not some messy tentage).

People who like photography like dad go all out to take good pictures. Just today, dad made mom and I cross the road halfway just to take a picture of the night market. The other enthusiastic photographers clamoured onto the narrow road divider, oblivious to the heavy traffic, and started snapping the symmetrical nice-ness of the Arch of Triumph and the night market. Not long ago, I took a night walk (at least 2 km, in cold weather) with dad to accompany him while he took a picture of the Notre-dame's night time light-up.

We'll be leaving Paris tomorrow afternoon (Saturday) and I'll reach Singapore on Sunday afternoon.

Since this'll be my last post here, I'll sum up. In short, I really admire how Parisians are able to retain their rich history and culture (old buildings, French cuisine) whilst keeping up with the latest fashion (I'm sure we know) and technology.

Happy thanksgiving!

I was watching CNN just now and it was describing how millions of Americans would not be able to even have a descent meal on their tables for thanksgiving dinner this year. I have too much to be thankful for. For a decent dinner just now, I'm thankful.

This morning, we went to Basillique du Sacre-Coeur, which is an old cathedral that sits on top of a hill. The hill was in a small neighbourhood called Montmartre. Despite the narrow lanes and cobbled roads, I enjoyed walking around this small town. The small shops were also rather interesting and artistically decorated.

Napolean's coffin. He should be inside..

After that, we visited Napolean's (remember that guy?) tomb and the army museum. The visit to Napolean's tomb was insightful because I managed to learn more about French history. It was also easy to tell that Napolean was a great king because so much effort was put into sculpting his tomb.

Escargots!

A closer view

I ate 4 snails during lunch. Since we were in France, mom and dad found it a neccesity to try the Escargots here, so they ordered 12 snails. I thought snails should have been part of salads since they were, well.. somewhat related. The dish looked live 12 graves dug for 12 poor snails, covered in olive oil, garlic and whatever secret garnishing the undertakers dumped in. I think they don't taste too bad - just a little squishy. The trick to successfully eating it is to not stare too intently at the black curled structure dangling on your fork. Oh yes, more importantly, try not to think too much while chewing on it.

Musee de Orsay

A sculpture of Mozart holding a violin

We visited the Musee d' Orsay, a museum which used to be a large train station. The museum presents the whole range of fine arts between 1848 and 1914. There were works from famous artists such as Monet, Van Gogh and Matisse. I found it hard to appreciate the masterpieces, but I think I can blame dad's genes for that. Dad was practically frowning at the pieces and only some works won his favour. His physics-filled brain was probably already overloaded with art. Mom, on the other hand, had the patience to pause in front of every painting and slowly take in all the goodness.

After that, we went to Galleries lafeytte, which is a very big departmental store, split into 3 huge buildings. We did some shopping (Jean's going to like what I got her) and bought food from the supermarket to cook back at our hotel. I like dinners like this because they're more homely, and they also taste good.

Good night to me, and good morning to those in Singapore!

Paris - Day 3 (a historical day)

This morning, we took a train out to the outer part of Paris (we are staying in the downtown part) to Veilhan Versailles, the palace of King Louise XIV of France. The train ride was interesting because I saw the residential areas of Paris, which finally looked more normal in their architecture. The houses were mostly bungalows, not the HDB style. It reminded me the old US residence we had.

Outside the palace

The palace was restored and converted into a museum. We walked through the rooms, saw the queen and king's beds, many paintings and other artefacts. There was a n audio guide so I didn't get too bored. The palace had a huge garden, which was at least 10 times bigger than the building. I think it's crucial that the palace (including the garden) is huge so that the king can explore his home and not get bored easily.

The glass pyramid and the Louvre

We all know her...

In the late afternoon, we spent another few hours visiting the Louvre, a famous musuem. There was the glass pyramid in front of the old building which I think I saw in The Da Vinci Code (movie). The Louvre is very big because it also used to be a palace. It is rich in European history. One of the paintings on display is the Mona Lisa (original). I was quite excited about seeing it for real.

For people my age (18/17 and below), it's a good idea to go to Paris to visit museums and other sites because I usually got reduced entrance fees (eg. climbing up the Arch of Triumph) or even free tickets (eg. the Lourve). I kept rubbing in to mom that I was more economical to bring around in Paris.

Paris is really a city of lights. The buildings look old but when they're lighted up, they look very good. It's a different feel you get from looking at Singapore at night.

My legs are very tired from walking around so much. Free and easy holidays don't have the luxury of tour buses, organised plans etc. Sometimes we get lost and all that, but the good thing is that we get to learn a lot more from reading up and experiencing the adventures on our own. I don't remember any holiday when we joined a tour group.

Paris: 10:36pm, Wednesday
Singapore: 5:36am, Thursday

Paris - Day 2

Paris: 8:32pm, Tuesday
Singapore: 3:32am, Wednesday

This morning, I woke up very happy because I managed to sleep well. I think I drifted off in less than a minute after lying on the bed and I slept all the way through till 8.30am. Mom, on the other hand, seemed rather jealous because she was suffering from a jet lag and found herself waking up at 4am.

Notre-Dame at night

After breakfast, we walked to Notre-Dame de Paris, which is a cathedral which was first built in the 6th century. It underwent several reconstructions along the way and today, it retains its 1200s structure. it's very big and grand, and it's stained glass windows are a marvel. The painted windows depict stories and events from the Bible. I admire all the effort the people put into constructing their church.

Eiffel tower

Inside the Eiffel tower

The view from the highest viewing deck of the Eiffel tower

We visited the Eiffel Tower later in the morning. The weather was very good (not raining) and so we managed to take good photos of the tower. After queing up for a long time, we went up the tower in a lift. The 2nd level of the tower had the best view since it was not too high, and not too low. The highest point was all the way at the top. It was extremely cold up there and the winds were strong. It was nice feeling like I was at the top (somewhat) of the world.

A conversation I accidentally overheard;

A (A tall guy): I'm afraid of heights...
B: Then how did you get so tall?

Arc de Triumph

Let me introduce you to a guy. Now, please don't think too far. He lived centuries ago. He's Napolean, and no, not the one depicted in Animal Farm. This guy conquered many parts of Europe and Asia a long time ago. Today, we went to visit the Arch of Triumph, which was built under the command of Napolean. Napolean won many wars and was very powerful, but one day, he lost a war in Russia. He was exiled in St. Helena, Britain, and later died there. The Arch of Triumph was only completed after his death. After some time, his bones and ashes were taken back from Britain and passed under the Arch of Triumph. This arch brought about both shame and pride for the French. For example, the Fench wept when German soldiers marched under the Arch of Triumph and France fell to the Nazis.

Sorry I know this picture is of very bad quality. If you look carefully, you can see the spiral staircase that stretches all the way down. There's mom and dad looking up. I got a little dizzy climbing it.

We climbed all the way up to the top of the Arc of Triumph. It took a total of 284 steps and was 50m high. I was very fasinated by the view at the top because it revealed the artistic urban planning in Paris. The Arc of Triumph is in the centre and there are roads that stretch out from it to form something like a ferris wheel structure. There was a lot symmetry involved and the roads looked so well-planned. The roundabout area around the structure is rather messy because the cars are all over the place and there are no lane markings or traffic lights. I was quite terrified at first but I think the drivers are quite alert. I haven't witnessed any accidents so far. (edit: I finally witnessed one on the last day)

In the evening, we walked around a wealthy district, something like Singapore's Orchard road, or even better. Branded shops lined the stretch of road and most were very high-end. We walked around Louis Vuitton, which was super huge, like 10 times bigger than the ones in Singapore. There were some showrooms for cars, with brands such as Mercedes Benz and Peugot. The cars on display were very cool and rare. And today, I just found out that there are Mercedes bicycles.

My legs are acheing badly from walking the whole day. On an unrelated note, French food is nice. Oh and Mac Donalds isn't as rampant here as it is in Singapore. Now, I'll go have some food and rest.

Paris - Day 1 (a very long day)

Me standing on the road which our hotel is on.

I'm typing this using the computer in the hotel lobby and it's rather challenging because some of the keys are not in the standard set up. Right now, it's 10pm, Monday, here in Paris, and around 5am, Tuesday, in Singapore. My body clock is messed up after travelling for 21 hours (including 3 hours of transition time in Doha). Sleep quality in the plane was terrible and it was so exhausting just siting there and rotting away. I think my stomach must have been rather confused too because I ate breakfast twice on the 2 plane rides.

Seine River

Here's a brief introduction on the geography of Paris. It is basically divided into 2 sides, the North (Right bank) and the South (Left bank). The Seine River is the dividing line. There are quite a number of bridges that connect both sides of Paris, and each one has a unique history. I'm staying at a hotel near the river, in downtown Paris.

The Metro. There are 2 interesting things about it. First, you have to push a button to open the door yourself. Second, most city trains are double-decker.

After checking in, we took some time exploring the Metro (their train system) before taking a train to a place not too far away. There, we took a cruise that took us along the river. It was already rather dark by 6pm, so we were able to take a look at the light ups along the river. The buildings in Paris are generally old-fashioned but most are very grand. At night, the lightings are quite nice. It was cold on board the cruise but it was worth the sights.

The wine

Today was also a significant day because I was able to drink my first legal glass of wine. In France, anyone at least 16 years old can consume wine, and those younger than that can do so under adult supervision. While we were having dinner, we discovered that wine cost as much as a bottle of coke, so we went for wine. It's also one of the rare things that are cheaper here than in Singapore. Ah well, I'll have a few more days to appreciate the joy of drinking wine before I return and have to wait a few years more.

Dad posing with a 5kg bottle of Nutella in a supermarket

After dinner, we walked around and tried French snacks like Crepes and something called Choros, both of which are very nice. Oh and I think Nutella is produced in France, because I saw extremely large jars (whatever they usually store it in) of Nutella in those shops\stalls selling Crepes. Crepes also seem to be a very important snack in Paris, because there are whole restaurants dedicated to serving Crepes.

The weather is cold, wet and windy, making it even colder than it should be.